When the founder of YKK, Tadao Yoshida, was a boy, he read a biography of Andrew Carnegie and was deeply influenced by Carnegie’s philosophy that those with great wealth must be socially responsible and use their assets to help others. As he worked to build YKK, Tadao Yoshida made the…
At YKK we are always looking for new ways to become a more environmentally ethical company by improving our manufacturing processes, creating more eco-friendly products and by participating in corporate social responsibility activities that help the environment. Likewise, we support the jeans industry in its recent efforts to develop more…
There are three major parts of a zipper: (1) the elements, which mesh with each other, (2) the slider, which is the part you operate with your hand and (3) the tape, which is made of cloth. Here at YKK, we make sure that each component is produced to meet…
Not only does YKK show concern for the environment, but many of our employees at our subsidiaries are finding ways to preserve the environment themselves. Two of our employees at our company, Tape Craft Corporation, each adopted a mile of highway in memory of their children. These two employees with…
Every year, YKK produces enough zippers to wrap around the world 50 times. That’s 1.2 million miles of zippers! The National Manufacturing Center of YKK in Macon, Georgia produces around 65,000 miles of those zippers annually. Shane Herndon has been working at YKK for 27 years. He is the Slide…
Have you ever wondered how YKK tests the quality of our zippers? We asked Greg Alexander, Quality Engineer, to explain how his department ensures the quality of our zippers and other products. ” We utilize the best available technology such as digital microscope with high quality imaging abilities, capable of…
YKK produces 582 standard colors. About 10 million colors have been registered worldwide. Robin Barnhill, Dye Lab Manager, shared her insight into her department’s role in the overall production of zippers. How long have you been working at YKK? 11 years Briefly describe a typical work day: Customers are our top…
As part of our National Zipper Day series, we are interviewing experts from our very own National Manufacturing Center in Macon, GA to shed some light on what it takes to create a zipper. Here at YKK, innovation is part of everything we do; from our high quality products to…